Prime Minister HE and opposition leader Sam Rainsy said on Tuesday that they are working together to create a new law that will limit the ability of landlords to increase rental fees from one contract period to the next.

Rental rates have been a particular source of frustration for garment workers who have moved to work in Phnom Penh, with each of the three minimum wage increases introduced since 2013 met with sizable rent hikes.

Speaking to more than 4,000 graduating university students on Phnom Penh’s Koh Pich island on Tuesday, Mr. HE said he and Mr. Rainsy were cooperating to introduce new rules they say would prevent this from happening.

“We will need to make one law that protects both sides,” the prime minister said, adding that the current rental market brings undue harm upon both tenants and landlords due to the sparse use of contracts.

“The landlords just increase prices arbitrarily due to verbal contracts: The price for the room is this amount and they don’t have a problem with the number of people living together. But then, when they hear workers’ wages are being raised, they immediately increase the price,” he said.

“The other issue is that sometimes workers stay in a house [and] while they are living in their room, they look to rent another cheaper house. Then they leave their old house to live in the other house, and the landlord has no tenant,” he added.

“The leaders of the two political parties, meaning those inside and outside the government, will create a working group to begin writing this law,” Mr. HE said. “Before that law comes out, I appeal to landlords to not increase their prices so that workers keep more money.”

Mr. Rainsy said by telephone that rent-control laws exist “even in the most liberal countries” and that he hoped such a law in Cambodia would promote the use of long-term rental contracts that protect both landlords and tenants.

“It is a joint initiative of the two parties to make a law to address the broad issue of relations of landlords and tenants, because we want the relations to be clear, transparent and based on equality. We don’t want landlords to raise rents or change rental contracts as they please,” Mr. Rainsy said.

“In many countries, you can only increase rents in line with inflation—you cannot just increase rents as you please. This law will fix increases from one period to another period, and in that period, landlords will only be allowed to raise rents by a certain proportion,” he said.

“The proportion will reflect inflation, or other measures clearly defined that reflect economic conditions and indicate purchasing power. If the landlords increase rents by more than is allowed legally, the tenants can lodge a complaint and the courts will sanction the landlord,” he added.

Mr. Rainsy said he envisioned the rent-control law applying equally to all residences in Cambodia—from $30 and $40 rented rooms to $1,000 rented villas.

“In principle, the new law should cover all types of lodgings, because you cannot have double standards. The same guidelines will apply for all rents,” Mr. Rainsy said, dismissing the possibility that price controls could reduce housing supply.

“Rents will not be artificially low,” he said. “There can be possible revisions. Suppose there are improvements—the landlord improves the house or flat—then the rent can be increased accordingly. We don’t want to distort markets, but what we want to do is to prevent abuse.”

Ath Thorn, a prominent garment-worker union leader, said he supported the proposed rent-control law and that it was refreshing to see political parties competing for support.

“We have no doubt what they are doing is political,” Mr. Thorn said. “But we want to see the parties competing for the interest of the workers. That is what we want.”

Rent control was introduced in Dubai many years ago because rents could triple or more at the end of a contract. There was huge skepticism when the law was introduced that required landlords to only raise rents in line with inflation or move into the property because they had nowhere else to live... expats regularly take landlords to court there now and win. But that's because in Dubai, the legal system does not presume that foreigners are greedy, incompetent scum that are inferior to the locals. In South East Asia the law pretty much does presume that.

However, I think this law is really about protecting the garment workers who find that every time they get a publicly announced pay rise that their rent goes up immediately by exactly the amount of the rise. So fingers crossed, it will help those folks out.

"If you want a vision of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face - forever." - George Orwell

Agree, it was obviously raised to protect garment workers/factory workers. I heard from a few factory workers that as soon as they get a raise, sometimes out of spite the factory call up the landlords and tell them, and hoo-ha, the rent goes up by up to 50% of the increase.

For the longer-term residents - what's the tradition here of landlords boosting the rent at the end of the lease because you've improved the property with, say, air conditioning, hot water, etc (which obviously you will rip down and take with you)?

StroppyChops wrote:For the longer-term residents - what's the tradition here of landlords boosting the rent at the end of the lease because you've improved the property with, say, air conditioning, hot water, etc (which obviously you will rip down and take with you)?

Never experienced it, tbh. Perhaps more likely with properties where tenants run a business.

I've been in my current place for over 3 years, and after the first contract the landlord wanted to up the electricity to 1200/kWh. I contested it, and they agreed to leave it at the CDC rate.
After the last contract expired over a year ago, I told them i don't want to sign another contract as I want to move, and would rather just go month to month with me giving a months notice should I decide to go. I've stayed 15 months since then!

great points Vlad,
will definitely be more picky with my next accommodation, my location was great last time, tbh there wasnt much wrong with the place other than the fact that the owners didnt speak any english (my khmer friend sorted me the room out) ground floor room number 1 so only had one neighbor could park up right outside my door, was great,
fell out with the owners in the last month though, i was under the impression that my last months rent would be covered by the deposit, but they changed their mind and i had to pay another month upfront, my rent lasted up until the 10th june, told them i was checking out on the 6th but ended up missing my morning bus (too drunk) so i rebooked my bus for the next day and got my deposit back from my room(with bills paid out of the deposit), then that evening i get a knock on my door by the owners confused that i was still here, i told them id missed my bus, they were uttering something about hotels and letting me stay for free, i told them im paid up until the 10th so i can still stay here if i wanted, i told them my new bus is early in the morning so will be leaving around 7am, they said ok but id have to pay a deposit for the electric for that night and were asking for $10, i protested saying i was hardly going to use $10 worth of electric in 1 night, and wouldnt have time to fuck about in the morning and end up missing my bus again, i offered them $3 to cover the costs of the electric for the night, but they refused, with them saying "but you might end up using $5 of electric" and i was like theres no chance in hell im going to use $5 worth of electric in 1 night!! i was going to be out drinking and saying bye to my friends, ended up paying the $10 deposit,
come the morning i tried getting my deposit back, had to wait a good 20-30minutes for the owner to come back and fuck about with the meter, and magically the bill came to a nice round $5 and he handed me $5 change, they started to say something but i left swearing as my bus was leaving in like 10minutes,
there were far better places for the money i was spending, looking forward to going apartment shopping when i return i only had that place for a few months so wasnt that fussy, my next place will be a lot more permanent so will be a lot more picky regards everything that vlad mentioned